Title of Paper s5

Title of Paper:

Reflective writing for the development of professional identity of preservice teachers in the practicum setting.

Author: Georgina Cattley, Flinders University, South Australia

Paper presented at the European Conference on Educational Research, University College Dublin, 7-10 September 2005

Abstract This paper reports on a study in which pre-service teachers, that is student-teachers, reflect upon their observations of professional activities and school communities, during their final practicum placements in several South Australian schools. The literature supports the notion of broadening pre-service teachers’ understanding of the nature of teacher responsibilities and professional role (Valli, 1997). This project required the pre-service teachers to reflect upon their responses to, and observations of, a number of broad elements of the teaching environment both within the classroom and in the wider school context. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a reflective writing task was a suitable process for supporting pre-service teachers in the development of their understanding of the nature of teachers’ work, while forming a sense of professional identity. Finally this paper makes recommendations as to the potential contribution of reflective writing for professional identity formation of pre-service teachers during the practicum.

Key Words Professional identity, pre-service teacher, reflective writing

Introduction This paper outlines findings from a small scale study at Flinders University, South Australia, on the potential role of reflective writing in the development of professional identity within the pre-service teacher, during practicum placements in schools. The literature supports the notion of broadening pre-service teachers’ understanding of the nature of teacher responsibilities and professional role (Valli, 1997). This study required pre-service teachers to reflect upon their responses to, and observations of, various elements of the teaching environment such as daily classroom interruptions, parent liaison and staffroom activities. The study aimed to shed light upon whether a reflective writing task during practicum experiences would serve as an effective tool for pre-service teachers in developing their understanding of teachers’ work and school cultures and further, be supportive in the formation of their professional identity.

Terminology The term ‘pre-service teacher’ rather than ‘student teacher’ is used in this paper so as to distinguish between tertiary student, as against school student, since in Australia the term ‘student’ refers to both tertiary and school students. Australian schools do not usually use the term ‘pupil’ to identify ‘school students’.

‘Mentor teacher’ and ‘supervising teacher’ are used synonymously to refer to the teacher of the class or subject, with whom the pre-service teacher is placed within the practicum.

‘Primary school level’ refers to the first year of school to the seventh year of schooling. In South Australia this refers to Reception to Yr 7, that is 5 to 13 years of age.

Georgina Cattley 1 ‘Middle school level’ refers to the sixth year of school to Yr 10, that is 10 to 15 years of age. ‘Secondary school level’ refers to the eighth year of school to Yr 12, that is 13 to 18 years of age.

‘Reflective writing’ is a means to reflect upon the management of uncertainty and ambiguity experienced in the wider culture of the school community leading to ‘changed dispositions’ (Jay & Johnson, 2002 p. 76). The meaning of reflection is summarized elsewhere by authors such as Jay & Johnson, 2002 and by Valli, 1997.

‘Professional identity’ may be described, by borrowing from the narrative literature, as the fostering of ‘self-descriptions’ (Winslade, 2002, p.35), but which are confirmed by the social and cultural norms within their context (Winslade, Crocket, Monk & Drewery, 2000). This notion of a socially constructed identity (De Ruyter & Conroy, 2002, p.11) is particularly relevant for the pre-service teacher, as the context within which professional identity emerges, changes from one practicum setting to another. Identity is said to develop as a nexus of the ‘ideal person and professional image’ (De Ruyter & Conroy,2002 p.515; Atkinson, 2004) and professional identity as seeing self as a teacher and ‘by others’ (Coldron & Smith, 1999, p.712) while ‘continually constructing a sustainable identity as a teacher’ (Coldron & Smith, 1999, p.714).

Professional identity development As professional identity development is a key component of this study, I will now draw from the literature in order to provide a backdrop for the findings and discussion.

For the pre-service teacher, the sustainable aspect of identity is particularly vulnerable from one practicum experience to the next, as the each school placement can differ widely. This demands the pre-service teacher to exercise ‘fine judgments about contextual factors’ (Coldron & smith, 1999, p.716). Therefore by the end of the third and final block of practicum, totaling 18 weeks within a two year period, which is the situation for participants in this particular study, there has been much opportunity for the pre-service teacher to develop a sense of ‘where and how do I fit?’ in the school context. Yet it is important to be mindful of Zembylas’ (2003, p.113) description of identity as, ‘the self, never completed’. This suggests that to know yourself is therefore to not know yourself as we are always in the making. Uncertainty about self could therefore be seen as inviting the new and suggests an openness to change. This could perhaps be summarized in the words of Hoveid & Hoveid (2004, p. 74) who describe teacher identity as a ‘strange quality in bonding with people who change,..’.

In Australian schools a large amount of autonomy is bestowed upon the teacher and also the pre-service teacher in practicum settings especially when making decisions about curriculum and teaching methods. While this may be welcomed by most, it also imposes a large responsibility upon, while adding to the vulnerability of, pre-service teachers. As Coldron and Smith (1999, p.718) point out there is a ‘personal dimension to most aspects of a teacher’s daily work’. It follows therefore that the more decisions pre-service teachers make, the more chance there is of these being criticized by others. This offering of feedback, both positive and negative, is often seen as the required role of supervising teachers, and hence the pre-service teacher’s sense of competence, an important element of professional identity, is once more undermined

Georgina Cattley 2 or shaken if there is an overabundance of negative feedback. Self-preservation or ‘care of teacher-self’ (Zembylas, 2003) is indeed an important requirement in sustainable teacher identity. Pre-service teachers who choose to take risks in their pedagogies are particularly vulnerable if by doing so, their mentor teachers identify them as being out of tune with their own way of thinking. This could lead to self- doubt on the part of the pre-service teacher. If the chosen pedagogy is substantially different to that of the mentor teacher and this in turn ends in criticism, it could shake the pre-service teacher’s growing sense of professional identity. Power relations between the supervising teacher and pre-service teacher can then become the focus of the relationship often having a detrimental impact on the desired development of a robust professional and personal identity.

Several factors influence the progression of teacher identity which by nature has ‘messy meanings’ (Zembylas, 2003, p.109) and is ‘rich and complex’ (Sachs, p.160). These influencing factors upon the fluid nature of the formation of a professional identity journey, include the degree of general self-confidence and the strength of relationships with others. This quality of relationships is especially important with with supervising teachers as the relationship is often sensed as involving power over, if the supervising teacher also has the role of assessor in addition to mentor. The emotional experiences in the practicum setting and the nature of feedback given on teaching skills, all play a part in the development of self-efficacy and hence self and professional identity. Yet the pre-service teacher, as with experienced teachers, would not be deemed a competent professional if they were not able to uphold the paradoxical nature required of a teacher as proficient, skilled and knowledgeable while ever self-questioning and displaying the disposition of a life-long learner (Bloomfield, 2004; Bullough & Young, 2002 p.429; Hargreaves, 1998; Graham & Phelps, 2003).

An additional need beyond the practicum for the development of a strong sense of professional identity is to endeavour to reduce the high drop-out rate of beginning teachers (Ewing & Smith, 2003; Darling-Hammond, 2003; Martinez, 2004; Pietsch & Williamson, 2005). This is not to suggest that a robust professional identity in itself is sufficient to curtail the disenchantment experienced by beginning teachers. However, a strong sense of personal and teacher identity which strengthens beginning teachers’ understanding of the demands and nature of the teaching role upon entering the profession, may go someway to reducing the concerning early fall-out rate. If experience in reflective writing could deepen the understanding of the teaching role then it could play a valuable role in reducing this international concern about retention rates of beginning teachers.

This study The pre-service teachers in this study experienced three different school contexts during their practicums for their Bachelor of Education Degree at Flinders University, South Australia. This paper reports on the second stage of a two-part study (Cattley, 2005), in which pre-service teachers wrote reflective statements in their last practicum. The practicum is an important point in teacher development upon which to focus, as differs from many other studies. While other researchers focus on reflective writing for the development of the teaching skills of experienced teachers, fewer authors talk about professional identity of pre-service teachers. Atkinson (2004), Sugrue, (2004) and Twiselton (2004) are however some exceptions but these focused

Georgina Cattley 3 on reflective discourse and practice whereas this study combines the use of reflective writing in combination with professional identity for pre-service teachers.

Given the complexities of the nature of, and responsibilities involved in teachers’ work (Connelly & Clandinin 1999; Valli 1997) the focus for reflection in this present study was on non-instructional aspects of teaching. This choice of focus is supported in the literature by Tickle (1999, p. 137). This is not to say however that competence in teaching practice is not important. It is of course inextricably involved in professional identity development but it is the notion of teaching as a ‘relational profession’ (Connelly & Clandinin, 1999, p.85) that behooves us to focus on the emotional responses to the broad range of school situations that the pre-service teachers find themselves in, rather than teaching competence alone.

Method There are two strands within the method, firstly as a researcher, using an action research or action learning model. Secondly in what could be described as a combination of a biographical and case study method (Burton & Bartlett, 2005) whereby participants used a ‘reflective log’. After considering several other frameworks I chose the Campbell-Evans & Maloney (1998) framework for reflective writing since its levels for analysis were about the quality of reflective statements rather than about various aspects of the topics of content which were the focus of other frameworks (Valli, 1997; Spalding & Wilson, 2002; Jay & Johnson, 2002).

I will now describe the first strand pertaining to researcher action learning. Part of my purpose for the study was to ascertain the suitability of a task on reflective writing as a means for supporting pre-service teachers in professional identity development. It was important to me to gain new understandings through my investigations and to be ‘genuinely exploratory’ (Gray, 2003, p.22) in order to determine the necessary elements of an appropriate reflective task for pre-service teachers. Application of this ‘reflectivity’ aspect of action research (Burton & Bartlett, 2005, p38) led to a refinement of the research method between the first (Cattley, 2005) and second stage of this project. This occurred following feedback from the pre-service teachers about the process. Openness to feedback is a widely acknowledged element of the action research model when applied to education professionals (Burton & Bartlett, 2005, p44, Ryken, 2004). Berry (2004, p. 151) describes this as ‘exposing one’s vulnerability as a teacher educator’ which in this situation is as researcher. I did this through conducting a feedback meeting with the pre-service teachers involved in the research project after the first stage of the project. I invited suggestions from the pre- service teachers before implementing stage two. They suggested that four reflection logs (rather than six as in the first stage) would be less demanding of their time and therefore achievable. They also claimed that the question prompts were important to them and appreciated the presence of these on the log sheets, (see Appendix 1).

After the data from stage one was analysed, I informed each of the pre-service teachers involved, where the majority of their written reflective statements fell on the Campbell-Evans & Maloney (1998) framework. I then gave them an analysis task to rate twelve of their combined reflective statements according to the framework, informing them that there were three statements from each of the four levels. This task was therefore some explicit input on the different qualities of reflective writing. This was a deliberate decision to ‘coach’ the pre-service teachers in achieving the

Georgina Cattley 4 richer levels of reflection, given my supposition that it is these levels of reflection which are most likely to enhance the development of professional and personal identity. This rating task therefore became a ‘teaching tool’ with the group of pre- service teachers in analysis of their own reflective statements written in their first stage. Feedback was given using this schedule and participants could more easily identify the differences in quality of reflective thinking since they were analysing their own written statements. In other words the pre-service teachers were able to apply the framework used in this study, (Campbell-Evans & Maloney, 1998) to their own reflective statements written in stage one.

In addition, my original purpose for this study, as mentioned above, was to determine whether a reflective writing task was a suitable and sufficiently explicit process for supporting pre-service teachers in the development of their understanding of the nature of teachers’ work, while forming a sense of professional identity. Therefore I wanted to determine what would be needed in the structure of a task on reflective writing, were I to recommend introducing a reflective writing task in a new topic within our newly formed teacher education degrees which commenced earlier this year.

It was not my aim to evaluate the Campbell-Evans & Maloney (1998) framework as rather, it was purely my tool for teaching or explicitly explaining the different qualities of reflective writing skills. Hence in stage two of this study, while I recorded examples of the pre-service teachers’ reflective statements, I abandoned any numerical rating in the analysis of their statements but instead looked purely for rich examples from the two higher levels of the framework as indication of professional identity formation. It could be said therefore that the method involved a grounded theory model in that new concepts were created by ‘observations of the data’ (McMurray, Pace & Scott, 2004, p. 230).

As previously mentioned, the method for the second and main strand of investigation, that is of the participants’ development of professional identity in the practicum setting, involved the participants’ in writing a reflective log. This method of an ‘ongoing account of growing professional competence’ has been used widely in teacher research (Burton & Bartlett, 2005, p.176-7).

In the first stage of this study, as described in a previous publication (Cattley, 2005) the participants, nine volunteer pre-service teachers, were requested to write reflective statements on their observations of professional or school activities covering two different situations in each of their six weeks, during their second practicum. Following this stage of the project, the students offered the researcher feedback which subsequently led to some changes in the method for stage two of the project. In stage one for example, it was noted that the pre-service teachers had tended to describe the context as an introduction to each reflective log. Subsequently in this second part of the project, the Reflection Log invited a brief description of the context in a box at the top of the page (see Appendix 1) so as to be able to distinguish the context description from the report style first level of analysis described in the framework. This resulted in a focus by pre-service teachers on three levels only of reflective statements as defined by the Campbell-Evans & Maloney (1998) framework, the majority being in the upper two levels of analysis and reconceptualisation. In other words, by providing

Georgina Cattley 5 an area for context description, the pre-service teachers tended not to use the simplest report style reflective comments.

Eight out of the original nine participants in stage one, (one having withdrawn from the project part-way through stage two) completed stage two of the study by writing reflective logs on four occasions over their eight week block practicum which took place in eight different school settings. All participants volunteered for this project, were female and in Bachelor of Education courses ranging across all year levels of schooling from junior primary to secondary. These pre-service teachers left school themselves from between five and twenty years previously, thereby representing a range of ages and life experience.

Given the changes in method between the two stages of this study, comparison of data analysis from each of the two stages was not justifiable.

Discussion of findings I suggest that it is when the quality of the pre-service teacher’s reflections cluster around analysis, evaluation, reconceptualising and stating a philosophy and vision of teaching, that is the third and fourth level of the Campbell- Evans and Maloney (1998) framework, that a development of self-identity best occurs, in terms of the personal and professional. While these specific qualities of written reflections can be taught explicitly, the same quality could perhaps be achieved through a second method, that is by the careful selection of prompt questions (see Appendix 1). The students in this study identified in their verbal feedback that the prompts were extremely helpful to them when writing their reflections. Such questions are used in narrative therapy and the prompts on the reflection log sheets were borrowed from this arena, (Winslade, J. (2002); Winlsade, Crocket, Monk & Drewery, 2000). Brookfield (1995, p.73) who indicates that a reflective log gives the teacher ‘insights into your own emotional and cognitive rhythms’, suggests similar prompt questions.

Furthermore, since the role of teacher is broad and complex it is necessary to encourage pre-service teachers to reflect upon their multifaceted role, as was the case in this study. As a result, for example, the pre-service teachers in this study raised issues such as time-management, team work, student engagement on learning tasks, managing differences between parent and teachers’ values and balancing the workload of the teacher role with relaxation activities. None of these specific aspects of a teacher’s role was suggested on the Reflection Log Sheets but rather, these were additional issues raised in the written reflective comments made by these pre-service teachers. This suggests that by reaching the deeper levels of reflective expression the pre-service teachers will focus more on, what Moore (2004, p. 150) describes in his explanation on reflectivity, ‘the broader picture of social contexts of classroom interactions’ rather than what could be deemed a more technicist interpretation of reflective practice when the focus is on teaching skills or lesson delivery only. For example one pre-service teacher reflected upon the interactive nature of time, effort and the impact of these on student-teacher relationships: …the more I get involved the more I realise just how much teachers really do. It is certainly not a profession you can leave at work! I found myself doing a lot of marking and class preparation in the evenings and on weekends. However, the more effort I put in the more I get out of the job and the more I love it! I find teaching so rewarding. The best part of the job is the relationships with the students. I have found that by doing lots of preparation and having really well organized and

Georgina Cattley 6 varied lessons that students respond to you. Students know if you are putting in the effort and they tend to reciprocate the effort you put in, thus helping that bond and relationship.

Connelly and Clandinin (1999, p.95) claim that the ‘different facets and different identities can show up to be reshaped and take on new life in different landscape settings.’ This could be applied to the various facets of the teaching role in which these pre-service teachers found themselves involved. For example, whereas they may have felt confident about their curriculum choices, several mentioned how they felt intimidated when liaising with some parents. As one pre-service teacher commented: I was surprised by my feelings of inadequacy when questioned by parents.

I am suggesting therefore that by encouraging pre-service teachers to reflect upon the breadth of their roles, they are more likely to shape a robust professional identity.

Involvement in a writing a reflective log could in itself have contributed to the development of the participants’ identity as a teacher, if they saw themselves in the role of researchers, which as (Burton & Bartlett, 2005, p183.) propose, is a normal part of professional identity. Knowing that they were a part of a research project with requests to comment on their own experiences could well have supported the pre- service teachers in viewing themselves as researchers and hence, if Burton & Bartlett’s (2005) views are valid, also strengthened their sense of teacher identity.

Hoveid & Hoveid (2004, p. 53) advocate that the process of teacher identity formation should be made a ‘conscious pursuit’ and I propose that by explicitly guiding pre- service teachers in reflective writing, which is ‘directed towards ones own self among others’ (Hoveid & Hoveid (2004, p. 53), they will strengthen confidence and competency in the relational nature of a teacher’s role. A common feature of the pre- service teachers’ reflections in this study was their response to the paradoxical nature of a teacher’s work and in particular within the relational aspects. For example one pre-service teacher commented: ‘However, as my relationships with the parents grew I soon became caught up talking to them in the mornings and listening to them. Finding a balance between building a good rapport and knowing when to carefully send parents on their way is difficult’.

Another comment was in relation to a student with a medical condition: ‘Although he is aware of his condition I am responsible for his health while he is with me. I find it difficult to get the balance between fussing and responsibility, that is, getting duty-of- care right.’

The importance for teachers in their understanding of self is acknowledged widely in the literature. As Hamachek, (1999, p. 209) poignantly expressed ‘Consciously we teach what we know; unconsciously we teach who we are’. A strong sense of self is vital if pre-service teachers are to positively develop their professional identity during the practicum. This is particularly important when these teaching novices are questioned by their students. The following reflective statements from one middle schooling pre-service teacher in the study, highlighted this notion of interplay between self-understanding, self-efficacy and relationships with students: The students were not really engaging or responding to my questions. I wonder if they sensed my own internal fears about not being able to teach this subject adequately. I guess as time goes on and I begin to feel more comfortable both as a teacher and in my relationships with students, that this issue would cease to cause so much concern. I found the Yr 7’s to be more accepting of information, as opposed to Yr 9’s who love to question everything. This

Georgina Cattley 7 questioning can be quite intimidating. I especially found it intimidating during lessons where I wasn’t quite as prepared as I would have liked to be.

I guess I have gained a certain level of comfort with admitting that I do not always know the answers to everything – but students are welcome to help me research to uncover information which will enable us to gain better understandings.

Similarly the same inner strength and sense of competence is needed when managing questions from parents. A primary school pre-service teacher in the study made the following comments addressing her concerns:

Decision making needs to be suitable or ‘good’ enough to suit all persons concerned. This may include the students, parents, colleagues, principal, and the surrounding community members. I have realized that when I make a decision I need to know in myself that it is the right thing to do, because there is every chance that I will need to justify my reasons to any of the above people.

The parents are obviously only looking out for their children and possibly concerned about something they would like to find out more about. On the other hand the teacher could feel somewhat put out by these questions and come to the conclusion that the parent feels they are not doing their job as a professional.

I feel I need to gain a high self-awareness and self worth before even attempting to teach in a school where parent liaison may not be a pleasurable task

Tickle (1999) suggests that the interface between the personal and professional is paramount in the development of teacher identity. It could be argued that reflection on self-as-teacher during the period that pre-service teachers are on practicum is an opportune time for this activity and more easily achievable than for beginning or experienced teachers in that pre-service teachers may be more willing to self-question, as they do not expect of themselves to have all the answers, whether in relation with students or parents.

There was a strong display of emotions in the pre-service teachers’ reflections. Zembylas, (2003) reminds us that acknowledgement of emotions is essential in identity formation while teachers are required to adopt the ‘emotional rules’ acceptable for the professional teacher in a specific school culture. Reflective writing could therefore be argued to provide a medium for the expression of otherwise unacceptable emotional portrayal (in the school context) while providing a forum for the investigation of both the ‘personal and social’ (Zembylas, 2003, p.112) aspects of emotions and the link to self-formation.

Hargreaves (1998, p. 838), agrees that teachers have a ‘heavy emotional investment’ in their relationships with both students and the parents within the school community. This emotional aspect of the role of teacher and hence the development of teacher identity is always present (Bullough & Young, 2002). This is not surprising since much of teachers’ work is on show to an audience of one type or another, and usually a large number at any one time, be it students, parents or colleagues. This differs from other service professionals, such as in health, who more often are interacting with one client at a time or other types of professionals who produce a product such as an engineering report, which is not usually under surveillance during the act of writing. Teaching differs largely as the delivery of the service is instantly observable by an audience, perhaps more akin to a surgeon, along with its successes and mistakes. Furthermore this ‘gaze’ on teachers is constant (Kosnick & Beck, 2003, p.20)

Georgina Cattley 8 especially for the pre-service teacher on practicum. It is difficult therefore, for them to escape the sense of pressure and vulnerability to emotional responses that emerges when thought to be under surveillance or being judged for high career stakes.

In this study there was a range of emotions expressed in the written reflections which included: I felt so empowered today! I feel so frustrated! I am feeling confident and therefore more relaxed. Other comments included for example, feelings of concern, vulnerability, privilege and amazement. There was a range of both positive and negative emotions expressed.

One pre-service teacher spoke of her fear of not getting control when she found herself shouting at her students. She explained how she gradually learnt other strategies leading to what Britzman (1986, p. 450) describes as ‘social control’ thus contributing to her sense of competence. I know now that I can gain attention effectively without feeling stressed about it. I guess the stress factor is caused by fear that one may never be able to effectively gain attention of students. I am very, very pleased I have overcome this fear.

Some striking aspects of this study emerged from attempts to analyse the data in terms of the quality of the pre-service teachers’ reflective statements. While framework’s such as Campbell-Evans & Maloney’s (1998) was useful in this regard, it would have been beneficial to apply an additional scale or framework for analysis, one that would capture the richness of content and diversity of the topics included in the written reflective statements. For example while the pre-service teachers wrote about many of the suggested topics on the Reflective Log sheets such as decision making, the Campbell-Evans & Maloney framework (1998) did not provide a way of acknowledging breadth and wealth of content in the themes that emerged in the comments. For example several pre-service teachers wrote about the ‘heavy responsibility’ for their decisions. Further themes, as previously alluded to, included their sense of professional competence when interacting with various members of the school community , the paradoxical nature of teachers’ work and perspective taking of others’, particularly of parents. For example one pre-service teacher was clearly able to put herself in the parents’ shoes through her reflection: At first I felt uncomfortable with parents ‘watching my teaching’ however as I became more confident with my own abilities I realized they wanted to know how I relate to their children.

The theme of ‘heavy responsibility’ which emerged could sound a caution in being alert to what Moore (2004, p.104) describes as the pitfall of reflective activity becoming an ‘unhelpful over-personalisation’ or indeed personal ‘blame’. To avoid this Moore (2004) suggests that there is a sharing of reflections with others. This was achieved to a small degree in two ways in this study. Firstly the researcher read and collated the comments and secondly through a short de-briefing meeting at the conclusion of the practicum. In future however, this sharing aspect could, and maybe should, be expanded upon if teacher-educators wish to ensure change, which is in this case, progression in professional identity within the pre-service teacher. One way may be to encourage the pre-service teachers to share and examine personal biographies of their own school experiences, (Moore, 2004) underlying beliefs and assumptions, thus enhancing possibilities for ‘change in direction’ (Moore, 2004, p.148) as a result of reflective writing.

Georgina Cattley 9 An interesting aspect of the reflective statements was however a strong absence of ‘blame’ of others. This was in contrast to a previous study which was on gaining feedback during the practicum (Cattley, 2004) where it was found that the pre-service teacher shared blame or shared responsibility for various situations with their supervising teacher. It was noticeable in this present study however, of what seemed to be the total acceptance of personal responsibility contained in most reflective statements. This may have been influenced by the fact that stage two was at least six months after stage one and the pre-service teachers were in a different school setting, thus practice effect in reflection and emotional and professional growth are likely to have naturally occurred.

The analysis could therefore have been more thorough and subsequently informative had there been a screening on the emergence of indicators of professional identity development. One such indicator could be for example, the breadth of teacher role described within the reflective comments. The development of indicators of this breadth and understanding of the complexity of teacher-role could perhaps be drawn from the discussion on findings section of this paper.

Concluding comments and recommendations This paper has drawn links between the nature of pre-service teachers’ reflective writing statements and their understanding of the teacher’s role. Given the complexity of the development of professional identity in teachers, it was considered to be important in this study to focus on non-teaching elements of teachers’ work in order to expand the pre-service teachers’ notions of the range of teacher responsibilities (Valli, 1997,) and the nature of school culture, if they were to develop a strong identity as a teacher professional.

I have demonstrated that reflective writing has been a valuable tool for professional identity formation in this group of volunteer pre-service teachers. As for recommendations for the wider application of this tool, there needs to be supportive structures in place in addition to setting a reflective writing task. Firstly, the skills for reflective writing need to be taught explicitly. Secondly, the provision of a scaffold of suitable prompt questions, such as those on the Reflection Log proforma (Appendix 1), is more likely to result in reflections which support identity formation, since the questions invite analytical and evaluative reflection. Further, providing a strategy which encourages the sharing of reflections and personal experiences should enhance the potential influence of reflective writing on professional identity development.

Georgina Cattley 10 Appendix 1

Research Project: Student-Teachers Reflections on Observations in Practicum Setting Week ______(of practicum)

You may wish to reflect upon any aspect of the life of a teacher. This could include: decision making, questions asked of teachers, teachers as a school community member, staff room activity, parent liaison, daily interruptions to programs or any aspect of teaching.

Reflective Log Proforma Here are the reflection prompts to guide you. Reflection on Observations General Reflections Summary Reflection What impact have these observations had upon you? What makes you feel What are your views, Have you been surprised by the outcome of any of your ‘like a teacher” philosophy or vision observations? How were things different to what you had during this prac? about what is involved expected? Does anything in being a teacher? What sorts of self-talk have you found yourself having during or as threaten your sense What has influenced a result of your observations? of self as a teacher? you to come to these What emotions have you experienced during your observations? viewpoints? Have these changed over time? What has influenced these changes?

Note: These questions were adapted from the work of (Winslade, J. (2002); Winlsade, Crocket, Monk & Drewery, 2000). Brookfield (1995)

Brief description of situation/context (optional)

Your Reflections: Aim: To reflect on self in the development of professional identity as a beginning teacher

Georgina Cattley 11 Appendix 2 Examples of responses from each of the 4 levels of reflection Level 1: Report Pre-service teacher 2 Description, factual recount During this prac I have had substantially more contact with parents that ever before. Level 2: Review and Focus Pre-service teacher 2 Simple suggestions or alternatives, plans for action, I started thinking that perhaps I need to find balance in my life. I explaining cause and effect, low level questions, need to make an effort to relax and enjoy myself rather than stewing reworking intentions and outcomes over what has happened in the day.

Pre-service teacher 4 It made me question whether other ways of communicating[other than a newsletter] may have worked better or whether parents are too busy to read the huge amount of paperwork that students bring home.

Level 3: Analyse Pre-service teacher 8 Interpreting events, making sense of a situation or One girl in Yr 10 in particular started off very chatty, off task and event easily distracted. Once we went on a field trip and started talking and Diagnosing, comparing, evaluation, questioning building a relationship she engages and appears to be calmer, not showing off and even thanked me for staying on time. This made me feel proud to be a teacher. It is truly about building bonds but also remembering your responsibilities as a teacher for their learning. Pre-service teacher 5 I have consciously attempted to build strong relationships with my students and their parents. I believe it its critical to me being a successful teacher. At first I felt uncomfortable with parents ‘watching my teaching’ however as I became more confident with my own abilities I realized they wanted to know how I relate to their children.

Level 4: Reconceptualise Pre-service teacher 1 Reworking views and ideas, stating philosophy or Sometimes being at teacher requires a huge skill in peripheral vision, vision of teaching, image if teaching and teachers having the ability to observe multiple situations at once, and being Insights into how students think about themselves as capable of making split decisions about what circumstance has teachers, stating a purpose of education priority at any point of time.

Pre-service teacher 8 Being a teacher requires a positive frame of mind 90% of the time. It requires you to have positive self-esteem or the ability to mask personal problems. It needs a network of social experiences that boosts positive interactions. Teaching is tiring yet rewarding.

Campbell-Evans & Maloney (1998) framework and Pre-service teachers reflective writing examples from Stage 2 of this descriptors study

Georgina Cattley 12 References Dublin 2005 Atkinson, D. (2004). Theorizing how student teachers form their identities in initial teacher education. British Educational Research Journal. 30 (3), pp.379- 394. Berry, A. (2004). Confidence and uncertainty in teaching about teaching. Australian Journal of Education. 48 (2) 149-165. Bloomfield, D. (2004). Emotional journey of professional experience. Presented at Australian Teacher Education Association Conference. July Bathurst: Charles Sturt University. Britzman, D. (1986). Cultural myths in the making of a teacher: biography and social structure in teacher education. Harvard Educational Review. 56 (4) 442- 456. Brookfield, S. (1995). Becoming a critically reflective teacher. Jossey Bass: San Francisco Bullough, R. & Young, J. (2002). Learning to teach as an intern: the emotions and the self. Teacher Development 6 (3), 417-431. Burton, D. & Bartlett, S. (2005). Practitioner research for teachers. Paul Chapman Publishing:London. Cattley, G. (2005). Reflective writing for preservice teachers in the practicum setting. Proceedings of the 2005 Australian Teacher Education Association Conference. (pp.121-126). Surfers Paradise, Queensland. Campbell-Evans, G. & Maloney, C. (1998). An analysis framework for reflective writing. Australian Journal of Teacher Education 23 (1) 29-38. Coldron, J. & Smith, R. (1999). Active location in teachers’ construction of their professional identities. Journal of Curriculum Studies. 31 (6) 711-726. Connelly, F.D & Clandinin, D.J. (1999). (Eds) Shaping a Professional Identity. Stories of Educational Practice. New York:Teachers College Press. Darling-Hammond, L. (2003). Keeping good teachers: why it matters, what leaders can do. Educational Leadership, 60 (8), 6-13. De Ruyter & Conroy, J. (2002). The formation of identity: the importance of ideals. Oxford Review of Education. 28 (4) 509-522). Ewing, R. & Smith D. (2003). Retaining quality beginning teachers in the profession. English Teaching :Practice and critique. 2,(1), 15-32. Graham, A. & Phelps, R. (2003). Being a teacher: Developing teacher identity and enhancing practice through metacognitive and reflective learning processes. Australian Journal of teacher Education. 27 (2), 11-24. Gray, A. (2003). Research practice for cultural studies: ethnographic methods and lived cultures. Sage Publications:London. Hamachek, D. (1999). Effective teachers: what they do, how they do it, and the importance of self-knowledge., in R Lipka & T Brinthaupt (eds), The role of self in teacher development. State University of New York Press, Albany, pp. 189-224.

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